Campaigners see ‘shift in attitude’ over health plans

GROUPS opposed to the reduction of services in Monaghan General Hospital said there’s been a “shift in attitude” from the Government on plans for changing the health service in the north-east.

Following a meeting yesterday with the Junior Minister at the Department of Health Brian Lenihan, campaigners believe the Government has for the first time “a genuine understanding of the problem”.

Monaghan Town Mayor Padraig McNally (FF), who has fronted the campaign to retain services at the hospital, said: “There wasn’t a very fruitful outcome to the meeting. But there seemed to be a genuine realisation that the two hospitals in the region, Drogheda and Cavan, are overburdened with work, while Monaghan is under-utilised.”

The meeting with Mr Lenihan followed a protest outside the Dáil of more than 500 people angry with plans to remove more services from the hospital.

Paediatric, maternity and emergency surgery have already been removed from the hospital.

Chairman Peadar McMahon said: “Over the past number of years we have met with minister after minister after minster and every time we were given nice talk and we call it the valium tablet: enough to keep you quiet for a while. We have had enough valium. We need action. The only action that will satisfy us is to see the services brought back into Monaghan in their rightful place.”

Monaghan Fianna Fáil senator Francie O’Brien was booed when he told protesters that the Taoiseach is “fully committed to supporting Monaghan General Hospital”.

Marian Quigley from Monaghan was protesting because the hospital saved her granddaughter’s life. She said more children could have been saved if the children’s ward had not been taken away.

“Saoirse was two weeks old when she stopped breathing and we took her to the hospital where they resuscitated her. The children’s ward has closed so if the same thing happened her now she’d be dead. She’d have to travel more than an hour and she’d be dead,” she said.